Cyprus financial regulator CySEC has announced that it imposing a fine of €350,000 against former FXFINPRO and FinproInvest CEO Evgenios Martinides.

FXFINPRO and FinproInvest were retail forex brands operated out of Cyprus by CySEC-licensed PFX Financial Professional Ltd. CySEC revoked PFX’s license in early 2019 following a late-2018 board decision.

In addition to the fine, Mr. Martinides has been banned from the financial sector in Cyprus for a period of 10 years. CySEC also called out PFX director Yaroslav Martynenko. Mr. Martynenko wasn’t fined, but was banned by CySEC for three years. The decision to not impose a fine against Mr. Martynenko came about due to, among other things, the degree of his cooperation with the regulator and attempts to address the problems in the company.

CySEC stated that the withdrawal of the company’s authorisation was due to the fault, wilful omission
and negligence of then-CEO Mr. Martinides, and due to the fault and negligence of Mr. Martynenko.

At the time when PFX’s license was revoked, CySEC noted a number of non-compliance issues leading to its decision including in regards to:

• persons who effectively direct the business,
• organisational requirements,
• conduct of business obligations when providing investment services to clients,
• submission of CIF financial accounts, and
• submission of information to CySEC which are correct, complete and accurate.

The websites of both FXFINPRO and FinproInvest seem to have since disappeared.

More details on CySEC’s decision can be found in the Greek section of CySEC’s website.